Monday, February 27, 2012

Schedule

March 1, 2012:  Bake Off

March 8, 2012: Neuroplasticity by Gary S

March 15, 2012:  Consciousness and Neuroplasticity. Also Gary S.

March 22, 2012:  Synchronicity, by Sky

March 29, 2012: Gunther Pohlman Society

April 5, 2012:  Bake Off

April 12, 2012: Paul will present.

February 23, 2012: Tibetan Book of the Dead

     One of our members presented The Tibetan Book of the Dead. The English translation that is edited by W. Y> Evans-Wentz. This translation was first published in 1927, but a later edition from 1960s contains an Introduction by Carl Jung which in itself is an interesting article demonstrating the application of this book to a psychology for more modern times in the Western world.

     The title of the Tibetan death text was originally The Great Liberation upon Hearing in the Intermediate State. It is also known as the Bardo Thodol which means "liberation by hearing on the after death plane." Origninally written in about the 8th century, attributed to Padma Sambhava, an Indian mystic who history suggests introduced Buddhism to Tibet. The story goes that Padma did not think Tibetans were ready for these texts so he hid various copies of these writings in remote places so that they would be found later when Tibetan spirituality had evolved to understan the message in these texts. Karma Lingpa (1350) found several hidden texts when he was 15 years old. Contained within these findings were the now famous Great Liberation upon Hearing in the Bardo. Dr. Walter Y. Evans-Wentz, ,a Theosophist and devotee to Neo-Vedantic Hinduism, edited and commented on the translation fro Oxford University Press in the 1927 edition.

      These writings were meant to be read to those who have died but are still passing through the Planes of Bardo, a supposed time spent in transition from the current life to some sort of interlife and then for getting ready for the next reincarnation.

     Since the Tibetan Book of the Dead, or at least The Great Liberation upon Hearing in the Intermediate State is in the public domain, it can be found online at various sites for free. I have found this site where the entire book can be found. There are also videos with commentary that might be of interest for anyone wishing to study these writings further. They are not easy and the commentary perhaps helps our Western mind proceed through the readings better.
http://www.summum.us/mummification/tbotd/#summumtv

      It was suggested at our discussion that these readings be used as meditations. A few members of the groups have used them in that fashion, reading a section every day. Also two members of the group have read the text to someone who was dying or at least very very ill. All thought that this would be a loving tribute for a loved one -- to read the text to them as they became ill unto death. Our session leader this time suggested reading these days meditations as a tantric ritual. Tantric means a 'being' practice. It is an experiential practice, not an intellectual practice.You visualize deeply -- inside yourself. The goal is to get past duality and become one. Jamie commented that the Tibetan method suited her monkey mind. Tibetan visualizations were so busy that they kept her monkey mind busy. It is noted that we all have trouble understanding our absence of individual consciousness. We can not conceive of our own non existence. From there we create fantasies. We make ourselves exist in a relational way. What would it be like to have a non relational existence. The mind is just a phenomenon of a sensory existence.

 

February 16, 2012: Continuing Transforming Your Life through Love by Jeanne.

     Jeanine regaled us during this session on a recent trip she took to New York City. She visited the Museum of Mindfulness, where the first floor was dedicated to Tibetan art. She then planned to attend a lecture in which both an Eastern and a Western speaker considered the topic of Mindfulness.
     But what made these plans unusual was that on her way to the lecture, she came upon a scene where a small band was set up to play ancient instruments in a corridor. As she watched this set up, she noted that one band member seemed slumped over and appeared unresponsive in the center of the band. Other band members were somewhat gathered around him, but no one seemed to be calling any alarm. She went over to see what she could do, and the other band members reassured her that nothing was out of the ordinary -- that this type of occurrence was not uncommon for this band member. She attempted to take his pulse and assess him, but no one wished for a 911 to be called, though she did initiate such a call. Apparently this gentleman came out of his episode -- whatever it was, and proceeded to be playing in the band about 30 minutes later. This occasion just seem to set a mood for this lecture that she then went to hear. There was an other worldly nature to the whole afternoon.
     The Eastern speaker for this lecture was Shyala Tsen Tsen Rimpoche (means reincarnated teacher) has written a book entitled Living Fully, just published recently. Jeanine has just begun reading this book. The other speaker for the Western view was Marsha Lucas, Jeanine's electronic friend who hosted her in New York. Marsha has also just written a book entitled Rewire Your Brain for Love: Creating Vibrant Relationships Using the Science of Minfulness. Jeanine feels this latter book is a life changing book. Jeanine summarizes some of the basic tenants of the book: The author is interested in the attachment integration of the brain. She emphasizes how important your primary attachments are, and especially how important they are in children. Lucas has done considerable study in this area and feels that we enter life as "right brain" individuals. At that time of our development we are interested in the present where our emotional reactions are and where our creativity comes from. In the book, the author, Marsha Lucas, explains her theory of attachment backed up by her knowledge of neuroscience. Lucas talks about anxious attachments where one caretaker attaches too closely to the child. The opposite attachment would be called avoidant. All attachments are on a continuum between these two extremes. In many cases, caregivers are inconsistent and could not respond to the child's needs. This leads to mistrust when the caregiver was only interested in themselves. The author feels that past theories of mental illness were rudimentary because they did not take into account these relationships. The book is hopeful -- it indicates that we can fix our relationships. We can balance the right brain effects and the left brain effects by mindfulness practice -- meditation. During these practices, Lucas recommends starting on the outside, but then goes inward. But she also meditates outward to her relationships. She presents about 7 simple mindfulness techniques at the ends of each chapter to work on balancing, and improving the results of relationships in our past and present. Jeanine says that Lucas uses humor to teach in this book, making it very readable.
     Jeanine went on to describe the lecture which consisted of these two speakers having a conversation. I am sure the idea was to balance the Eastern and the Western views, but there was some difficulty due to differences in language. This interfered with the presentation to some degree.
     Our group provided some discussion:
     Every thought and every feeling is a transient neurological event. Sometimes we get very attached to our thoughts. We think they define us. But they do not. We must realize this last in order to move on spiritually. Someone brought up various memory types: explicit memory ( memory that we can call up) and implicit memory (memory that we can not call up). At some point we need to use and deal with both types of memory.
     Unrelated to this lecture in NY, Jeanine brought along another book that she recommends: Aging as a Spiritual Practice: A Contemplative Guide to Growing Older and Wiser by Lewis Richmond.


Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Wednesday, February 15, 2012

February 2, 2012: Bake Off

January 26, 2012: Transforming Your Life with Love by Jeanine

January 19, 2012: Part Two of Virtues Project, Companioning and How it Relates to The Good Listener

On this date, Sharleen continued with Part II of the Virtues Project. She talked about the 5th Strategy, called Companioning.
     Quoted from the website: The VirtuesProject.
     One of the greatest gifts we have to give is our presence -- our compassionate, attentive listening. It is a form of sacred curiosity. By being deeply present and listening with both compassion and detachment, we help others to empty their cup.
     The counseling approach empowers others to discern teachable moments and to reflect on their virtues. It supports moral choice, intimacy in relationships, and peaceful conflict resolution. When we companion, we never ask "shy?" We use open-ended cup emptying questions starting with "What" and "How". We always end with a Virtues Acknowledgement which helps to restore someone who has been vulnerable enough to share openly. Companioning is a powerful tool for healing grief, anger, and trauma.

     In more detail:

Companioning is a communication skill that: Requires Deep Listening.
                       Is Most Effective When We don't Have an "Agenda"
                       Is Meant to Support and Empower, Not Fix or Rescue
                       Primarily Consists of Silence and Open-Ended Questions
                       Requires Trust in the Other's Process

Open the Door... with open ended questions:  What's happening? What is it" What are those tears?"


Offer Receptive Silence ... Give them the space to speak fully, to tell the whole story. Be fully present with deep concentration and compassionate curiosity. Shield yourself with detachment, so you can walk intimately with them without taking on their feelings.

Ask Cup-Emptying Questions...... Follow their lead and ask questions that allow them to empty their cup and get to the heart of the matter:  Use what and how questions, not why or which.  "How was that for you?"  Take your cues from their words: Speaker: "I,m really worried."
Listener: "What worries you?"
Speaker:"I'm just not sure."
Listener: either remain silent or ask, "What are you unsure of?"

Focus on Sensory Clues.....     Concentrate on and even repeat words they use that involve seeing, hearing, feeling, sensing.
Speaker:  "it was the most beautiful sunset I ever saw."
Listener:  "Beautiful...
Speaker holds arms over stomach.
"What are you holding?"
"What is happening in your stomach?"
Speaker is yelling, "this place is so stupid?"
Match their volume. "What's stupid about this place?"
Speaker is crying: "What are those tears?"

Ask Virtues Reflection Questions
When they seem to have gotten to the heart of the matter or the core issue, ask a question that helps them to reflect on a virtue that will help them. About something that is frightening.  "What would give you the courage to...?" or "What would give you peace about this?"

Ask Closure and Integration Questions
"What was helpful about talking?"
"What's clearer to you now?"
"What did you appreciate about this meeting?"

Give a Virtues Acknowledgement
This is an essential step in restoring the speaker even if your companioning was brief and did not include all these steps.
"I appreciate your openness to explore this."
"I see your loyalty to your family."
"I honor you for your courage to face this."






January 12, 2012: The Virtues Project.

      On this date, Sharleen presented some basic elements of the Virtues Project to our group.
     The Virtues Project was founded in Canada in 1991 by Linda Kavelin Popov, Dr. Dan Popov and John Kavelin. It became a global grassroots initiative to inspire the practice of virtues in everyday life. There are now a multitude of international facilitators who have developed a strategy that can be taught and utilized across all religions and to some extent across most cultures. The intention of this Project is to teach and empower individuals to live more authentic meaningful lives, to help families raise children of compassion and integrity, to enable educators to create safe, caring and high performing places of learning, and and leaders in the workplace to encourage excellence and ethics in the work place. The hope is that this program would mobilize people worldwide to commit acts of service and generosity, to heal violence with virtues. It was honored by the United Nations during the International Year of the family as a "model global program for families of all cultures."

The program starts with a list of virtues that are worth cultivating. Educational material is sold to any group who wants it. Some of these guides are aimed at educating children. Some are aimed at religious organizations. Others are intended to be used in the workplace.

A brief list of virtues that are valued and worth practicing is presented here. There is a much more comprehensive list of virtues on the website at

assertiveness           gentleness            peacefulness
caring                      helpfulness          prayerfulness
cleanliness               honesty               purposefulness
compassion             honor                  reliability
confidence              humility                respect
consideration          idealism                responsibility
courage                  joyfulness            reverence
courtesy                 justice                  self-discipline
creativity                kindness               service
detachment            love                      steadfastness
determination         loyalty                  tact
enthusiasm             mercy                  thankfulness
excellence              moderation          tolerance
faithfulness             modesty               trust
flexibility                obedience             trustworthiness
forgiveness            orderliness            truthfulness
friendliness             patience               unity
generosity

Here is a much more comprehensive list of virtues: http://www.virtuesproject.com/Pdf/ComprehensiveListofVirtues.pdf

The five Strategies of the VirtueProject"

These strategies help us to live more authentic, purposeful lives, to raise children of compassion and idealism, and create a culture of character in our schools and communities.

1.  Speak The Language of Virtues
     Language has the power to discourage or to inspire. Using virtues to acknowledge, guide, correct and thank awakens the best within us.
2.   Recognize Teachable Moments
     Recognizing the virtues needed in daily challenges helps us to become lifelong learners open to the lessons of character.
3.   Set Clear Boundaries
     Boundaries based on respect and restorative justice create a climate of peace, cooperation, and safety in our homes, schools, and communities.
4.    Honor the Spirit
     We sustain our vision and purpose by integrating virtues into our activities, surroundings, celebrations and the arts.
5.    Offer Companioning
     Being deeply present and listening with compassionate curiosity guides others to find clarity and to create their own solutions. It supports healing and growth.

To learn more about the Virtues Project, the various material that is available to learn these techniques and strategies, how to order materials, and how to  become a facilitator. Go to www.virtuesproject.com